Head of Technical Operations (TechOps)
Formlabs · Somerville · $150,000–$190,000 (stated in the posting)
Join Formlabs if you want to bring ground-breaking professional 3D printers to the desktop of every designer, engineer, researcher, and artist in the world.
As the Head of Technical Operations (TechOps) at Formlabs, you will own the foundation the whole company runs on: our global network, on-premise servers, endpoints, IT service desk, identity and access, and the security program that protects Formlabs and our customers’ data. This is a single, combined leadership role — where you will lead as a player-coach.
You will lead a global team of 7 spanning network administration, systems administration, help desk, and cybersecurity, and support offices in Somerville, Germany, Budapest, and Shenzhen.
You will join the Systems team, which enables every Formlabs team with enterprise applications, infrastructure, data, AI, and security. You will report to the CIO.
This role is based in our Somerville, MA office and is an onsite role.
The Job:
- Team Leadership: Lead, coach, and develop a team of 7 across network, systems, help desk, and cybersecurity. Set clear priorities, build strong technical leadership within the team, and grow the team’s automation and scripting skills.
- Network & Connectivity: Own our Cisco Meraki estate across four countries — SD-WAN and site-to-site VPN, firewalls, segmentation, Wi-Fi, ISP circuits, cloud VPN tunnels, remote access, and the specific connectivity and compliance requirements of operating in China.
- Strategy & Roadmap: Define and drive a combined infrastructure and security roadmap that balances reliability, risk, cost, and user experience — and explain it in business terms to the CIO, CFO, and company leadership.
- Servers & Resilience: Own on-premise compute (Proxmox) and the services that run on it — lifecycle, patching, monitoring, backup and tested restores, and disaster recovery — and make deliberate decisions about what stays on-prem versus moves to cloud or SaaS.
- Security Program: Own Formlabs’ cybersecurity program end to end: policy, risk register, vulnerability and patch management, endpoint protection, email and SaaS security, logging, data loss prevention, and incident detection, response runbooks, and exercises.
- Staffing Model & Services: Provide leadership on how the team is staffed and which services it relies on — deciding what to build in-house versus source from managed service and security partners — and hold those partners accountable to clear scope and SLAs.
- Identity & Access: Own the joiner/mover/leaver process, SSO and MFA, privileged and break-glass access, and admin hygiene across Google Workspace and core SaaS — with the evidence trail auditors expect.
- IT Service Desk & Endpoints: Ensure a fast, friendly, measurable help desk for ~800 employees — ticket SLAs, onboarding/offboarding, laptop lifecycle and MDM, conference room and A/V, and site support — and personally own the hardest escalations.
- Automation & AI: Replace manual, repeatable work with automation and AI-assisted workflows across provisioning, monitoring, ticket triage, and reporting, so the team scales with the company.
- Vendors & Budget: Own the infrastructure and security vendor portfolio and budget — contracts, renewals, licensing, and hardware refresh plans — and make clear build/buy/partner tradeoffs.
- Documentation & Continuity: Maintain current diagrams, inventories, runbooks, and on-call/escalation coverage so no system depends on a single person’s knowledge.
You:
- Experience: 8+ years in IT infrastructure and/or security, including 2+ years leading teams, ideally in a mid-sized (500–2,000 person) company with multiple international sites.
- Network & Systems Depth: Hands-on expertise in enterprise networking (routing, VPN, firewalls, segmentation, Wi-Fi) and server virtualization; you can review a firewall rule set or a backup design yourself.
- Security Leadership: Practical experience building or running a security program at a company without a large dedicated security team — including EDR, identity, vulnerability management, and incident response.
- Service Mindset: You care how employees experience IT, measure service quality, and lead a help desk with the same rigor as a network.
- Vendor Management: Proven ability to design a team’s staffing and sourcing model, and to select, negotiate with, and hold managed service providers accountable.
- Communication: Translate technical risk into clear business decisions for executives, and write clear policies, runbooks, and recommendations.
- Controls & Compliance: Experience with frameworks such as NIST CSF, ISO 27001, or SOC 2, and with IT general controls in an audit-ready environment.
- Bachelor’s degree in a technical field or equivalent experience.
Bonus Points:
- Experience with Cisco Meraki, Proxmox, CrowdStrike, Google Workspace, and Cloudflare.
- Experience operating IT in China (cross-border connectivity, local regulations, remote-site support).
- Familiarity with GCP and AWS security fundamentals (IAM, logging, network controls).
- Scripting/automation skills (Python, PowerShell, Terraform, or similar) and hands-on use of AI tools in IT or security operations.
- Security certifications such as CISSP, CISM, or CCNP Security.
- Experience in a hardware or manufacturing company with R&D labs and lab networks.
Our Benefits & Perks:
- Robust equity program to build future wealth through RSUs
- Comprehensive healthcare coverage (Medical, Dental, Vision)
- 401K matching and access to financial advisors
- Generous paid Parental Leave (up to 16 weeks)
- Tenure-based paid Sabbatical Leave (up to 6 weeks)
- Flexible Out of Office Plan – Take time when you need it
- Ample on-site parking & pre-tax commuter benefits
- Healthy on-site lunches, snacks, beverages, & treats
- Regular sponsored professional development opportunities
- Many opt-in culture events across our diverse community
- And of course… unlimited 3D prints
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
Even if you don't check every box, but see yourself contributing, please apply. Help us build an inclusive community that will change the face of 3D printing.
Our Candidate AI Guidelines are available here. Please give them a read.
Compensation:
Equity is a big part of the compensation package at Formlabs - every employee receives equity because everyone contributes to building the company. We have a lot of confidence in the products we’re building and the impact we’re making, and you should too.
Base pay is the other part of our compensation package, and it is carefully determined based on your skills, experience, and expected impact. Equity and base pay combine to make up your total compensation package at Formlabs.